KIMBERLY AKIMBO Previews- Page 8

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 10/28/22 at 11:49am

Or it could go the way of Fun Home, which is even more niche, and gain an audience long enough to sweep the Tonys and turn a profit.

[MCW1227]

Posted: 10/29/22 at 9:19pm

I saw this today and had no knowledge of story, it’s off-Broadway success, or reviews. It was a lark that I even got the opportunity to be in the city and get a discounted Today’s Tix ticket. This show took my breath away with its charm and excellence in every way. This cast was amazing!!  The songs were complicated and unique and every cast member performed them to perfection. The comedic timing was spot on and the cast chemistry was polished and true. Victoria, who was wonderful,  was the only cast member I had seen in other productions, but each actor on that stage deserved accolades as well. 
 

while I can see where marketing this show might be a challenge, I think word of mouth on this will be fast and furious. The audience was so in tune with the show and as I looked around at peoples faces, there was smiles and laughter throughout. I highly recommend seeing this (I already bought another ticket to see it again) and sharing your experience with friends. 

[BroadwayBen]

Posted: 10/29/22 at 11:05pm

I went in not knowing what to expect, and I just loved this show so much.  It's surprising, dark, funny and  moving.  The performances are off the hook great.   I also loved the music.    I'm not a big fan of jukebox musicals or huge spectacles so this hit my sweet spot.   And Victoria Clark deserves a Tony.   Astonishing.   

[dearalanaaaa]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 8:43pm

I think I’m in a minority here, but I loved the show a ton! I found the book and the ensemble to be the true strength of the show- the music was not particularly my style but specifically the actors that played Sean, Aunt Deborah, and the space-burned ensemble member did so amazing in their roles! I really feel like they captured their characters perfectly and fully embodied what was meant to be. Victoria Clark was okay, but it was the full cast that worked as a team to make the show amazing. It feels like a tiny show that could situation, and it worked very well up close. I hope it lasts into Tony’s season because I’m really excited to see what the future has for this!

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 8:55pm

I saw this last Sunday, and while I mostly enjoyed it, I left feeling it wasn't the strongest material. The score is pleasant, but not Tesori's best work. David Lindsay-Abaire's lyrics were sometimes so mediocre that I was finishing the rhymes in my head before they were sung. The lyrics overall do not match the quality of Tesori's music. His book is better than his lyrics, and I enjoyed the quirky plot, but at times it felt like a 90's sitcom (a la Roseanne) but I think that's what they were going for.

The standouts are, of course, Clark, Milligan and Cooley. Really spectacular performances. Cooley is extremely impressive in his Broadway debut. Mauzey and Boyer also deliver really strong performances. 

Clark will break your heart in such a lovely and thoughtful performance. At times I felt the material didn't match her abundant gifts, but it is always so good to see her create a role in an original musical. 

I hope this show does well, and I want to see it a second time from a better seat. 

Updated On: 10/31/22 at 08:55 PM

[RUkiddingme]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 9:07pm

I loved the show off bway and loved it more on Broadway.  Something great will have to come along to take the Tony away from this show in June.

But I must say, the over amplification of the orchestra was offensive!  This is not Moulin Rouge!  It's a small show that demands small moments.  The group numbers are so loud you can't focus on who is singing or what they are singing.  Lucky I saw it at the smaller Atlantic space.

[Phillytheatreguy10]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 9:20pm

I have to agree. I liked this a lot, however, it is not without flaws. I agree with the poster who said the score wasn’t memorable, I would even go so far as to say it all sounds the same. Bonnie Milligan’s number is the one standout spot and I think it’s thanks to her performance and not the number itself. It’s a well produced musical, the set is functions really well and assists in moving the story along- and I’m still trying to figure out the skating scene! Victoria was radiant, but I agree, the material is not as strong as she is. I get the sitcom comparisons, it does feel like that at times. It’s an uplifting little show, we’ll see if it catches, I hope it does, it’s a lovely, feel good, night out. 

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 10:23pm

Justin, Bonnie and Victoria all deserves Tonys for their heartbreaking and brilliant work in this show. It's so special and I recommend it to everyone I know. 

[pollster2]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 10:38pm

I saw this early in previews after having not seen it Off-Broadway and it left me feeling somewhat conflicted. It is cute...but it is not the game-changer I kept hearing it to be. Victoria Clark is sensational and Bonnie Milligan is terrific. The show itself? Not so much. I didn't particularly care for the music. I didn't think it was bad, but nothing really stuck with me. The book also left me cold. The entire subplot with the four high schoolers felt really unnecessary (yes, I realize they need to shoehorn them into the check plot somehow but still) and as much as I liked Milligan, her character felt like a bad SNL character. I thought Steve Boyer and Alli Mauzey's characters fared better, but I do think it would have been interesting to cast them younger. Kimberly's mother was supposed to be a senior in high school when she got pregnant, so why not cast two people in their early to mid-30s? I feel like it would have packed much more of an emotional punch. Even Kimberly felt one note at times. I'm sure it will get great reviews but I just don't see how it will translate into stronger ticket sales. I hope to be proven wrong, but I can't see this limping its way to Tony nominations. Again, Clark is THE reason to see this show. She truly is exceptional.

Updated On: 10/30/22 at 10:38 PM

[josibroadwayfan2]

Posted: 10/30/22 at 11:58pm

I saw this show last night, and I loved it! I arrived at the box office at 9:00 am and was third in line for rush tickets (the two people in front of me bought for the matinee). I thought that the show was amazing. Victoria Clark was so good and the actors and actresses who played the high school students were super funny. Justin, Bonnie and Victoria were all amazing! All the cast members displayed so many emotions throughout the show. I loved the music. I am not sure if it is something that I would listen to over and over again, but it was very enjoyable. Overall I had a very enjoyable time and I recommend this show.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 7:37am

dearalanaaaa said: "I think I’m in a minority here, but I loved the show a ton!"

 

How does this make you a minority on this opinion?  Did you read only 2 or 3 others opinions?  

 

[ElephantLoveMedley]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 9:17am

Allow me to chime in with those saying that this is a lovely, charming, beautiful piece of theatre—but not the greatest thing I’ve ever seen. I don’t think it's going to be the bulldozer of awards season that everyone seems to be suggesting it will be.

The cast is far and away the standout. Victoria Clark delivers an absolutely stunning performance. Heartbreaking and uplifting all at once. I was also blown away by Justin Cooley—it’s easy to see the makings of a star in him. I know Bonnie Milligan has been deservedly receiving a ton of praise for her terrific work, but allow me to note Alli Mauzey who I think is turning in an extremely rich featured actress performance. Loved the cast; not a weak link in the bunch.

The set is also quite effective.

Unfortunately, I actively disliked the score for this show. In my opinion, it sometimes felt distracting in a story that I almost wished was being told as a straight play. There was a point late in the show when yet another unmemorable song started up and I rolled my eyes. I was really invested in the characters and the plot and found the bland score to be a distractor from the storytelling.

I also agree with the poster who said that the orchestra is WAY over-amplified. Someone needs to tell the sound design team that they’re at the Booth; not the Gershwin! This is a little musical at a little theater; we don’t need “Defying Gravity”-level volume!

I’ll be curious to see where this goes commercially on Broadway. Although I really enjoyed it, it didn’t quite hit at the level of feeling like I need to tell everybody I know to run to the Booth immediately. I'd give the show itself a B+ (but everyone in the cast an A+).

Updated On: 10/31/22 at 09:17 AM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 12:42pm

Does the 2:25 runtime Telecharge is posting seem correct?  

[dearalanaaaa]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 12:43pm

dramamama611 said: "dearalanaaaa said: "I think I’m in a minority here, but I loved the show a ton!"



How does this make you a minority on this opinion? Did you read only 2 or 3 others opinions?

"

Honestly? A little bit, and also I didn’t realize that lots of people agree that the score is pretty weak.


Unrelated but I forgot to mention that I got the rush ticket for yesterday at 2:15, under an hour to curtain. Which was a beautiful seat right at the front, not even partial view, and in my opinion if you want to see it definitely try rush since it’s such a small show that works best that close up, and it’s so cheap. 

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 4:10pm

The running time was exactly 2.5 hours when I attended. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 5:15pm

Clark will break your heart in such a lovely and thoughtful performance. At times I felt the material didn't match her abundant gifts, but it is always so good to see her create a role in an original musical.

I hope this show does well, and I want to see it a second time from a better seat."

One of my issues was that I also felt that the role / material was not up to her talents.  I expected a lot more introspection into her disease and just didn't see her being particularly challenged.  Some of her facial expressions were perfect for a teenager, but I didn't feel overall that the material really challenged her, at least in comparison to what I expected.

Ultimately for me, it was an enjoyable and very slight musical that does not justify Broadway prices unless, like me, you got great rush tickets for $40.

[2]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 6:23pm

Caught this again and it's even tighter in later previews. Clark, Milligan, and Cooley are giving some of my favorite performances on Broadway in recent memory. I have to disagree with the comments about the score, the group I went with left humming "Skater Planet", "Better", and "The Inevitable Turn" if not other songs too. Most of them were not regular theatergoers and wondering if there was a cast recording, so they enjoyed it enough to think about listening to it later on.

I really feel like this show is the antidote to the lamented "state of Broadway" with endless regurgitated movie-to-musical adaptations and jukebox musicals filling up theatres. I'm just so glad to have a new musical written by theatre people for theatre stars. Maybe I'm forgiving some of its flaws but I'd much rather spend Broadway ticket prices for something like this show than another celebrity bio-musical. It's up there with Spelling Bee, Little Shop of Horrors, and Drowsy Chaperone in terms of great, quirky musical comedies, and I'll definitely be rooting for them come Tony season.

[Bill Snibson]

Posted: 10/31/22 at 6:51pm

I guess I'm an outlier in regards to this show and all the praise it is receiving.  I was really excited about seeing it, especially since I saw the play back in 2003 and LOVED it. I suppose having Mary Louise Burke's version of Kimberly as a comparison was the problem.  I really feel like it lacks the heart of the play.  I think the score simply doesn't lend itself to the voice of a 16 yr old.  Kimberly is a high schooler who comes from a lower class Jersey family but there is no part of how she speaks/sings that is indicative of that.  Unless she is a complete bookworm, desperate to break away from her humble upbringing, would that ring true.  I love Victoria and her talents but she just didn't ring true as a high school student on par with the younger cast.  

 

 

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The beauty of the play was from the get-go you believed whole heartedly that Kimberly was 16 so when she showed up as the Grandma there was an audible gasp from the audience.  I found this moment in the musical so brushed over.

 I think there are 2 pretty songs...the Mom's song in Act I is pretty but so not aligned with how we have been introduced to that character AT ALL. Kimberly's Act II number is really beautiful and it was the one moment that got me crying.  For anyone that thinks this show will play well on the West End, I disagree...so many of the jokes are based on knowledge of New Jersey Townships let alone Great Adventure. How the marketing team decided to run with a candy necklace and Great Adventure is beyond me.  I'm ready for the hate...this is just my take away.  To each their own.

Updated On: 11/1/22 at 06:51 PM

[Mitch101]

Posted: 11/1/22 at 9:34pm

Please update your post with a spoiler warning since you give away a major plot moment in Act Two.

[dinabobbiemanke]

Posted: 11/2/22 at 12:21am

Went tonight, mostly for Clark, who I think gives a lovely performance. Her physical work and facial expressions communicated a lot that I wish the book/songs had taken more time with re character development. I felt the story was too busy. Milligan's role felt like a cardboard cutout - no way did I believe she resembled a real person. I completely agree with what someone said about her seeming to belong in an SNL skit.

There were a few good songs (particularly Clark's Act Two number; I cried) but the score felt all over the place as a whole. The choreography was rough, especially in Milligan's big number. The ensemble kids did not need to exist in anyway whatsoever and their numbers felt hokey. Cooley is a MARVEL. That kid is doing amazing work and him and Clark play beautifully off one another.

I thought the direction was bland, almost like few decisions were actually made. I think someone needed to keep Tesori and Lindsay-Abaire in check more - there is the ghost of something special here. Instead we have a forgettable, sweet show that could have cut at least half an hour off its run time. I also didn't care for the ending, so much felt rushed. I wished we had lived with the parents more - they didn't really feel like real people either, despite nice work done by both actors.

Maybe this worked better at Playwrights? But it was a miss for me. Not a bad show by any means. Just pretty forgettable. 

[decotodd]

Posted: 11/2/22 at 7:31pm

I saw this last week, and really was delighted. I'd read some of the mixed responses here on the board beforehand and almost chose another show for my limited slots while visiting. So glad I didn't. I'm a big fan of Victoria Clark (so her in FOLLIES in LA and PIAZZA). I agree that the music could be more memorable, though the last number was stuck in my head afterwards. I'd gladly see this again. By the way, was not a fan of FUN HOME, but this one really charmed me. I suspect it will have great word of mouth. 

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 11/2/22 at 11:58pm

Really sad to see some upcoming performances so undersold (some nights it looks like the mezz has less then 20 seats sold?)

 

Have they been having good day of sales, alot of rush etc? 

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 11/3/22 at 1:40am

Saw this for the second time this afternoon (first was a few weeks ago for the second preview) and loved it even more this time around!

The whole show felt sharper and the characters felt more lived in. I didn't notice any particular changes, but I thought some moments just worked a bit better.

I really connected with the music more this time around. I still think the book is the stronger of the two, but I walked out humming a lot more of the tunes. Father Time is still my favorite, but I also really like Skater Planet, This Time, How To Wash a Check, Our Disease, The Inevitable Turn, Before I Go, and Great Adventure. The Act II music is definitely stronger overall.

I do have 2 grievances. The first is that the choreography is really not great. It's not so important to this show, but there were some bad moments there. The second is the Anagram song. It was just so disappointing. I expected it to be a really cool and smart song that built anagrams into the lyrics. But (supposing I didn't miss it and am not dumb) instead, it was just Kimberly singing a song about Seth while he built anagrams.

[Big Apple2]

Posted: 11/5/22 at 7:43am

I wish I can share the wild enthusiasm displayed by the crowd at last night’s performance. But I can’t. I found the show just okay. While the performances were solid, especially Clark and Cooley, the book was a little light and the songs mostly forgettable. I also wonder about the show’s prospects after these two leave the cast. Will it be similar to DEH after Ben Platt left?

We rushed this and only paid $40. It will be too hard to recommend this at the $139 (plus fees) ticket price it is asking. 

Saw 5 shows on this trip. For a frame of reference, this is how I would rank them:

1. Death of a Salesman 
2. Leopoldstadt 
3. Moulin Rouge
4. Take Me Out
5. Kimberly Akimbo

[The Other One]

Posted: 11/5/22 at 7:48am

"I also wonder about the show’s prospects after these two leave the cast. Will it be similar to DEH after Ben Platt left?"

Dear Evan Hansen remained a big hit for a long time after Ben Platt left.  The Covid shutdown and the unsuccessful film (which of course starred Platt) are what hurt it.

Updated On: 11/5/22 at 07:48 AM